I can’t hear what you are wearing
My niece recently was married in Boise, Idaho. That seemed an opportune time to squeeze a couple fishing outings around both sides of the event! I managed to land one of the biggest browns I have ever caught, ate Mountain House freeze dried dinners, slept in the bed of pickup trucks under the stars listening the coyotes, chowed on fried Spam for breakfast. In essence, living like a king!
The big day came and I cleaned up, put on the suit, drank bourbon, offered congratulations and then made my way to the South Fork of the Snake to meet some friends with a drift boat. That is where things got interesting. The first day fishing the South Fork of the Snake was tough. I started off rowing the boat so I could kind of reacquaint myself with the unnatural act of rowing a drift boat. Still tired from the wedding and feeling just a little off, I managed to catch a few fish when it was JC’s shift on the oars. Tuesday morning, I was still feeling odd, and my voice hadn't come back. We fished the lower Teton and JC started off rowing because the Teton is a little more hazardous. I did take a few shifts but just felt hazy the whole time.
Tuesday night I felt like I was trying to cough up a lung. When I woke up Wednesday, I knew something was wrong. Definitely off and my throat and voice were worse. I told Pez I was sick and let JC know I had something. I caught a bunch of small rainbows, but don't remember much.
The next day we fished the upper Teton. I was in the fuzzy, surreal state you get with a fever.. At one point while rowing, Fairies Wear Boots by Black Sabbath was playing in my head for some reason, and I chuckled aloud wondering if Fairies Wear Boots is it possible that they also wear waders? DJ texted me shortly after to tell me literally every single person at the wedding had tested positive for COVID and asked how I was doing. I responded that I was fine, coughing up my lungs, sleeping 10-11 hours, rowing a drift boat but still catching fish.
I don't think I caught a fish that day. One of the holes had a moose in it when I rowed past. Pez wondered aloud what the moose was doing. "Eating, probably," I said.
"Eating? You think they eat cutthroat trout?"
In my COVID induced haze I considered that for a moment before saying, "What? No. They eat browse and some water plants". Who knows, maybe that is really why they are there. Trout can be delicious.
Now I am home and recovered, struggling to re-acquaint myself with things like hot showers, television, soft pillows and electricity. Although bacon has helped accelerate my adjustment. Bacon makes everything better. Three days without fishing and I have already lost hearing in my left eye. Although that could be because of the COVID…
– C. H. Daniels
